103.3 The Edge and Rapids Theatre present Megadeth

by jmaloni

Press release

Wed, Sep 12th 2012 01:30 pm

Band appears with special guests on
Monday, Nov. 17

Megadeth's
Dave Mustaine has personally overseen a new 20th anniversary edition
of the band's most popular album, 1992's double platinum-certified "Countdown to Extinction," to be
released Nov. 6 by Capitol/EMI. After wrapping up their "TH1RT3EN World Tour"
this fall, Megadeth will perform the acclaimed album in its entirety on their
"Countdown to Extinction 20th Anniversary Tour" this November and
December.

Presented
in a two-CD lift-top box and digitally, "Countdown
to Extinction's" new commemorative edition pairs the remastered original
album with a 1992 concert, recorded live at San Francisco's Cow Palace, which
has never before been released in its entirety. The concert audio has been
newly remixed for this release. The physical and digital versions both include
a booklet with a new liner notes essay by music journalist Kory Grow, and the box
set also contains a 24-by-36-inch poster and four collectible postcards.

"Countdown to Extinction,"Megadeth's
fifth studio album, was recorded in Los Angeles in 1992 as rioting raged across
the city in response to the Rodney King trial verdicts. American tensions
weren't limited to LA, by any means, as the Gulf War was still fresh in
people's minds, the state of the environment was becoming headline news, and
President George H.W. Bush was seeking re-election in a heated campaign season.

Out
of this turmoil, Megadeth was inspired to create "Countdown to Extinction," considered by many to be the band's
best and most accessible album. The group's previous albums, including "So Far, So Good...So What!" and "Rust in Peace," included songs that
tackled topics like censorship and religious bloodletting in the Middle East. But
none were as polemical as the sonic missiles launched by "Countdown to Extinction." Megadeth
laced the songs with acid-tongued commentary about subjects ranging from the
futility of war ("Architecture of Aggression") to the senseless brutality of
caged hunting ("Countdown to Extinction"). "Foreclosure of a Dream" sampled
Bush's infamous "Read my lips" speech, making a statement about taxation
endangering the American Dream.

Spin
magazine raved that "Countdown to
Extinction" "may just be the finest thrash-metal album ever made," and
before long, songs like "Symphony of Destruction," "Sweating Bullets" and "Skin
O' My Teeth" had entered metal's canon of essential recordings. The album shot
to No. 2 on the Billboard chart (it may have hit No. 1, if not for Billy Ray
Cyrus' long chart-topping reign with "Some
Gave All"), and it was certified double-platinum in the U.S. within two
years, with sales of more than two million copies.

Megadeth
was in top form, with Mustaine, the band's then 31-year-old singer and
guitarist, leading the album's assault with lyrics such as, "You know your
worth when your enemies praise your architecture of aggression," not to mention
his venomous rhythm guitar attack. His bandmates completed the picture, as lead
guitarist Marty Friedman blazed with memorable solos, bassist David Ellefson
jammed dizzying arrays of low-end thunder, and drummer Nick Menza attacked his
kit. Megadeth sounded hungry, and the band was rewarded when the album earned a
Grammy award nomination (Best Metal Performance) and when its title cut
garnered a Genesis Award from the Humane Society for raising awareness for
animal rights issues.